Rod Allen drove at Sportsman`s Park for the first time Saturday night in the $243,500 American-National 3-year-old trot and guided Somollison to one of the Chicago sulky season`s biggest upsets.
Sent off at odds of 32-to-1, Somollison barged between horses to take command in the stretch and went on to win by 1 1/4 lengths in 1:58 4/5.
He paid $66, $21 and $5.
Bolla, the third horse in last weekend`s $1.2 million Hambletonian, finished second in the American-National.
Editor In Chief, the 7-to-10 favorite, salvaged third place after breaking stride in the early stages.
Illinois-bred sensation Spec`s Boy faded to fifth after leading for most of the race.
Allen sent Somollison between Spec`s Boy and Bolla in making what proved to be the winning move.
”Down the lane I passed one horse on the left and the other on the right,” the 32-year-old driver said. ”I had to shake the bike a bit but I got through.
”I got away fourth and got a good break when the `2` horse (Editor In Chief) broke stride. That left me in the `2` hole, and kept me from being locked in.
”I had never raced here before but I watched the first two races and saw how long the stretch was. I knew I could wait until we were going down the lane to go for it.
”People always underestimate my little colt. Other than last week at the Hambletonian, he`s almost always 1-2-3.”
The triumph was the fifth in 17 races this year for the homebred son of Speedy Somolli-Country Janine by Nevele Pride, but he has placed four times and showed on three occasions. In the Hambletonian, he was seventh in the first heat and sixth in the final.
”It was a big field and he didn`t feel well,” said Allen, whose father, Carl, owns the horse and drove him in the Hambletonian. ”He can`t stand the heat and it was over 100 degrees that day.
”To refresh him for this race, I took him to Vernon Downs. They have a little river by the barns, and I took him there every day to cool out. He`d get in belly deep. It really did him a lot of good.
”I was at Sportsman`s before when my father raced here but I think the last time I was about 12-years-old. Then I didn`t realize how hard this business was. My dad is the one who put in the heartaches. Whatever I`ve achieved I owe to him.
”That`s why I wanted him to drive this colt in the Hambletonian. We argued about it for about two months but I finally talked him into it. Dad has come close before but he has never won the Hambletonian. I thought this colt had a shot, and if he won it I wanted my dad to be in the bike.”
